Slide fastener slider having pressure extensions



H. WENDE 7 Aug. 12, 1952 SLIDE FASTENER SLIDER HAVING PRESSUREEXTENSIONS 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed Feb. 10, 1949 H. WENDE Aug. 12, 1952 ISLIDE FASTENER SLIDER HAVING PRESSURE EXTENSIONS 2 SHEETSSI-IEET 2 FiledFeb. 10, 1949 Jay. IIIIIIIII'..

'IIIIIIIIII INVENTOR. Hermann Wend BY 7 HTTURNEY fatented Aug. 12, 1952sp ns FAST-ENER sLIDER HAVING 'PB WB TENS ON.

Hermann :Wende,

:Zurich-Zollikon, Switzerland,

assignonto Bernard E. Smith, New ork;:N.'. Application February 1lfifiafierialN 75;?25

,6: Claims.

1 Ihls invent-ion relates toseparable slide fasteners and moreparticolarly to improved sliders for eflecting opening and closing ofseparable slidej fa stenersoi the-type including a pair of elong'a edflexible elern'ents one having an enlargement extending alongitsfreeedge and the other having a sqeket extending along its free edgearranged to embracingl-y receive and inter- .loclringli e a e suchenlargement to close the fastener.

The invention is more specifically directed to eheh f e bl estehere we-h h l m r es a lh e ee hh ehh -l fla Stringer, ef shher r ther ex lmateriel, h i one or more enl rgernents along or parallel to its freeedge with the side edges of the enlargements being reversely directed todefine grooves therealong on either side of the str nger. The other 1ereierahhhf h same ma a and comprises a stringer enlarged along its freeedge to provide one orniore outwardly opening sockets: along or parallelto such edge. These sockets i fl a eee 3. en m ts n such first mentionedele tit, and each socket has one whe ha rs e re re t e e .rihs h s .ihhhrtay e reh e he e i er th ehh iseme ie the first ehti h mem rfastenerelement e eheh eer are a ed a @heh e e hv e S e Slider mer 1e iQ ?1 1Yeh reerre h a n their f ee ease These sheet h v s 9 Ou e h h elmeah emhh the e t an ee 'e s er e h. he heeeh emh ethe en ar e ment "T e .eeee eeha he me h i r he ope the lifit and the enlargement thereihter W ehehet-e eh l me h fi t ee he eeehetehie' h e eree e t interleek t fa te relements W e t Sheer is mo d en eee in e ehe ih .qhe eh e he 9%;? a s shre th ehla sem ex t e the eee t h eh leeteris r eas s eu he entiy ytheihre ehahhe heeh t al w t. h hneh d hr the n a ement ehah meahs 1 1heret t nsu e Pro e hh t ehhis e th e ie it has .h ete er been. eohsideee eee aw h .iehh h .eha he means e hav el e e i m hs h wi h th enlar mt a wit h see e fihiseseet fi ihs hi the li e e the astene elemehte'h ese era .si sa vehtaees n p're ie For e ample. in the ase of J fasten h me ehe, s y t i 1 are of large .e f ete ne fastener elements, d

contact, causing rapid hehhee ehra eh 1 the to the extensive areas ofwear destroying the-utility of the fastener. Also, with s all dimensionfasteners, it isverydifllcult to form the slider to the proper shapeanddimensions. .I'hese sliders are commonly formed .of

shetxmetal, a-nd a thickness or gauge of metal is needed to insureproper rigidity of the slider; Forming this metal to the proper,conforming shape-is difiicult, expensive and,iin some cases,:i-mpossible.

These disadvantagesmay. be avoided by form? ing the s-liderso that-itdoes not have afclose,

conforming, and exact fit with the fastener .elements, therebyeliminating. orreducing the abrassive effect for large slidersandsfacilitating the formation e f-small sliders. However, this-intros;duces another undesire'd efiect in that, if. the slider does notexactly. conform .to the. .shapeof the :fastener elements, reliance mustbe had on the natural resiliency of the elements :to com: 'i has broughtthe elements inlto'position .ior .such embrace. Consequently, thefinalaclosure of the elements occurs at a poi t some'distance beyond theslider. Between this-pointzand the sliden-the elements are notcompletely interlocked and may separate under transverse stresses.

To obviate this disadvantage while retaining the advantages of-asl-iderwhich does not'have an exact fit with-the socket and enlargement,ithepresent invention provides a slider having: exten sions arranged-topress the socket walls, rearwardly beyo d the slider channels, intointerlocking engagement with the enlargement.

These ,eggtensions, by preventing expansion ofthe until the elerne ntsyare ornpletely interlocked.

At fuc" tlrne, of' eourse, transverse stresses are unab e to openmaster-lea due tothe intereh hs .e h a tehe elem he emh imeh 91 h e t hh extensions comprise transversely" fflat, "longitiidiha eh e eheheeshehdi sf h 'w s-h flanges Let th et r. "q l-hlm r h e t s onv rse earrerql and re s th he l- Wel 9 t e i eehe f te n en W ee h lhehethe lhP'Q-hh?ht h u h er ehahh l iel'h ahly e ir le h e an v rse y e t ndin wasand t s rollers Y re parallel to the socket walls'and spacedsilfficiently cleee he ea h ether e Press hee 'h h t e r ht le h he .ehe haehtwi h t e emergernent.

.Shdere tie use wit eeeh h shle'separabl fat teners are usually formedof sheet 'r ntalf fine their interlocking embraceafter the slider to thecomplex shaping involved, fairly extensive manual operations arerequired to form the slider, and, if automatic or semi-automaticmachinery is employed, it is complicated in design and. expensive toconstruct. Furthermore, it is difiicult, particularly in the case ofsmall sliders, to properly form the requisite angles and curvatures inthe metal.

With this in mind, the invention further contemplates the formation ofsuch sliders by extrusion, punching, or plastic techniques. With suchtechniques, large numbers of sliders can be rapidly produced at lowcost, the exact desired form can be produced with precision, and thereis no necessity to compromise on operating character- Y istics becauseof design difliculties. Additionally, the slider may be made frommaterials which are not suitable for formation from sheet stock, thuswidening the range of materials available for sliders so that selectionmay be made on esthetic,

economic or other grounds. For example, special alloys or plasticcompositions can be used as the slider material.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending applicationSerial No. 738,832, filed April 2, 1947, for Fastening Device forGarments, Shoes, Tents, and the Like, said copending application beingfiled under the International Convention and being based upon Swissapplication No. 84,081, filed July 15, 1943, in Switzerland.

It is, accordingly, among the objects of this invention to provideimproved sliders for separable, flexible fasteners.

Another object is to provide a slider causing greatly reduced abrasionon the fastener elements while still insuring firm interlocking thereof.

Still another object is to provide a slider having means cooperable withthe flexible fastener elements to insure their resistance to transverse,slider opening stresses.

. A further object is to provide a slider of the above type which may beformed by extrusion punching, or plastic techniques.

These, and other novel features, objects and advantages of the inventionwill be apparent from the following description and the accompanyingdrawings. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an end elevational view of a separable slide fastenerof thetype to which the present invention is directed.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one form of slider according to thepresent invention.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal longitudinal sectional view of the slider.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a separable slide fastenor, of the type shownin Fig. 1, having the slider of Fig. 2 incorporated therewith.

, Figs. 5 through 11 are transverse sectional vlews'of the slider takenon the correspondingly numbered lines of Fig. 4.

Fig. 12 is an end elevational view of a modified form of fastener towhich the invention principles are applicable.

Fig. 13 is a side elevational view of another form of slider accordingto the invention.

Figs. 14 through are transverse sectional views of the slider of Fig.13, taken on the correspondingly numbered lines of that figure.

Fig. 21 is a view of the central portion of Fig. 18, on a large scale,showing a fastener element therein.

Referring first to the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 1through 11, the separable fastener to which the invention is applicableis shown in Figs. 1 and 4 as comprising a pair of elongated fastenerelements 30 and 40, formed of suitably flexible, preferably waterproofmaterial, such as natural or synthetic rubber, plastic compositionmaterial or the like.

Specifically, fastener element 3!] may comprise a substantially fiatstringer portion 3| having a socket extending along its free edge.Stringer 3| may have demarcation ribs 32 extending along either side andacting as location lines for securing the stringer to the fabric of thearticle to which the fastener is to be applied. Socket 35 has spacedparallel walls 33 with inturned free edges 34 shaped to form inwardlydirected, substantially triangular ribs 36, 36. However, ribs 36 mayhave other cross-sectional shape as circumstances may dictate.

Element 40 likewise has a stringer portion 4| with locating ribs 42 oneither side thereof. Along its free edge, element 40 has an enlargement45 having a thickness substantially equal to the spacing of the innersurfaces of socket walls 33, 33. The rearward surface of enlargement 45is formed with rearwardly opening grooves 46, 46 on either side ofstringer 4|, and these grooves have the same cross-sectional shape andarea as ribs 36, 36. When fastener elements 33, 40 are fullyinterengaged to close the fastener, enlargement 45 is embraced by socket35 and ribs 35 interlock in grooves 46, thus preventing opening of thefastener under transverse stresses.

Engagement and disengagement of elements 33 and 40 is effected bymovement of a slider 50 forwardly and rearwardly along socket 35 andenlargement 45. This slider is shown in perspective in Fig. 2, inhorizontal section in Fig. 3 and in place in Fig. 4. Slider 50 isessentially comprised of a sheet metal member bent and shaped to formwhat might be termed a double shell of cylindrical external form, andincludes outer and inner channels and 65, respectively, arranged toreceive socket 35 and enlargement 45, respectively. Channel 55 isgenerally C-shaped, and channel has a simple channel configuration.Channels 35 and 45 are diagonally related and oppositely facing, so asto draw the socket and enlargement toward each other when the slider 50is moved in one direction, and separate them when the slider is moved inthe opposite direction.

The C-shaped, outer, or socket channel 55 has a base 5| comprisingsections 52, 52, separated by a slot 53 arranged to receive the stringer4| of element 40. The side walls 54, 54 of channel 55 have inturned orreentrant flanges 5B, 56 defining a slot 5'! arranged to receivestringer 3| of element 30. Referring to Figs. 8 and 9, it will be notedthat channel 55 has only a loosely embracing fit with socket 35.

The inner or enlargement channel 65 is formed integrally with outerchannel 55, although it terminates short of the rearward or closing endof channel 55. Thus, the side walls 62 of channel 65 are continuationsof base sections 52 of channel 55, being united by base 6| of the innerchannel and being bent inwardly toward each other where they approachthe base of the outer channel to form confining or reentrant flangesdefining an inner, restricted, slot opening 53a. Channel 65 issubstantially frustoconical and is angularly disposed with respect tothe outer channel (Fig. 3) so that its base 3| and reentrant flangesboth approach flanges 56 of outer channel 55 toward the closing end ofslider 56. The inner channel 65 thus fits around enlargement 45 anddraws it further intoouter channel 55 as slider 50 is moved iorwaiidlyin a closing direction. Conversely, the enlar ement 4 5 isdrawnoutwardly of channel 65 as the slider 50, is moved rearwardly in ,anopening dire tion Movemen .of sli er 50 is effect b a ta 65 di g o aloop .61 rme o o ec red t o side wal 5. o out r channel .55-

.Tbeon a pn of slid r .50 in int r ock nssep arabl e emen s .313... 9 tclose h fas n r may be b s und rstood by ref rence to F s .5 hrou h 1 Fi5 t e relat e no 1; f lement 9 ml 49 is s own at a oint herons h fast neenin an o slide 59- E emee 30 and 4 are c m e el epa ated all 3.- 3. o ssket 35 ar substa tis lr ar c lsl is e ch ot ea e sl der 59 socket 35 so en d sli t due to the action of inner channel 55 in entering betweenand separating walls 53 within slider 50, as shown in Fig. 6, suchseparation being accommodated by the wide separation of flanges .54, 54of outer channel 55. Also, inner channel 65 has begun to drawenlargement 45 into socket 35. Immediately in front of the opening endof slider 50, as shown in Fig. '7, socket 35 has been opened wider bychannel 65 and enlargement .45 has been drawn further into the openedsocket 35.

Conditions at the entrance to slider 55 are shown in Fig. 8. Atthispoint, channel 65 has forced the walls of socket 35 outwardly againstthe flanges 54 of channel 55. The inner channel has likewise drawnenlargement 55 further into socket 35. Just short of the rearward end ofinner channel 65,35 shown in Fig. 9, enlargement 45 has been drawn fullyinto socket"35, whose width is greater than the width of theenlargement. Due to the rearwardly decreasing width of channel 55, walls3-3 of the socket have begun to approach each other to close on enlargenent 45.

As enlargement 45 leaves the end of channel 65, walls 33 of socket .35continue to close on the enlargement. Howeyer, in order to avoid theabrasive efiect f large areas of contact between outer channel 55 andthe socket walls, the channel 55 does not engage the socket walls. Up tothis point, closure is effected by the resiliency of walls 33 of socket3,5, but complete closure does not occur until a point beyond outerchannel 55 is reached. Consequently, without special provision toprevent it. the fastener could be opened beyond the slider, bytransverse stresses, before the natural flexibility of the socket 35 hascompleted the interlocking of elements'Bll and, with ribs 36 seating ingrooves 5.5.

The invention provides means for closing walls 33 onto enlargement 435immediately beyond ohannel 5-5 .so that transverse stresses cannotdisengage the fastener elements. In the embodiment of Figs 1 through chmeans's mprisss a pa o tongues W, W f rm d a in s ale tsnsisn o ide W ll5 o h e 5 Refs ne" o Figs and 1 ngues are transversely flat and approacheach other outwardly of channe1 55 until'their spaeing is equal to thenormal width of socket 55 its closed pos ti n- T9 a h e e t is s ts-cton u are on it d nally ur ll n ard sash o er u il the r inner s r a ear dis osed substantially l s to t er than the i e wal s .5 5.4 of outechan 5- hus. on ues 19 begin to force 5, 3 inw dl immediate af eremergence 5 5 551 135 tram cha nel 55, and brin the Walls,

6. 33 or the sock t a ainst enlar ement diet the ends of tongues 1;,0,,as-shown in F :11. The

t n u s 1!! thus re train walls 33 gainst .s par r tion.-.imm di te vbeyond'the m b y of slide 55, whereby transrerse stresses areineffective to b n the-fastenerb forethe elements 30 and ,0 are fullyinterlocked. A reverse movement of parts occurs on forward openingmovement of slider .50.

The slider-'50-. mayb fabricated .ofsheet meta or other sheet materialwithout requiring exact rrespondence of its channels o the shape of thesocketand enlargement. It should be noted that contact of channel 55 is'reducedsubstantially-to the line contacts between the outer free ed esof walls 53. while chan l 6 h s li co tactonly with the reverselydirected ed s .ofl largement 45and,.for a short distance only, linecontact h the cu d o e sur a e of the enlar em nt Thus fri ti is ea lyeduced. ithrel an ebe ne nlacedon to es 19 t i u gradual, f rc clc insoso t 5 n o nlargemc Tll s on ues a o ours t a dif ere t-t rm an e te d fparts of s i e 50 oth r tha flan e :54 of ch e Fi .2 ho s a modi d m ftene comprising an element 38 having a wider socket-.35 pr ided w th e-a s ed r ran l pairs of bs .35 an 35"- So ket 5' i a r ng d win lost wth enlar e nts t5 and on astener e ement 1 9, T e enlar ment ha e latral-1y pa ed Pairso pa al el roove a d corforrning to the ribs of socket35. In this case.

t e lider o ld have a lar e ute channel and a d ub e in r c ann l Figs13 t ou h 1 9 illus ate nother em ed? merit of the slider capable offormation byextrusion, punching .or plastic techniques'and hay-.- ingrollers in place of the tongues 10 of slider 50. The slider includes anouter or socket channel and a nne o en a g m t annel 85 w th the outerchannel having relatively thin walls and the inner channel havingthicker wall portions and being shaped in the form of a nozzle.

Thus, the outer chann l .85 comprises essens tially two side walls Blhaving reentrant flanges formed by inturned edges 82 spaced to form aslot 83 to receive the stringer 3! of element 30 Side walls 8| aresubstantially polygonal shape, each having a rearward edge 84perpendicular to the direction of travel of the slider and forward edges85, 85 merging into the projecting nose 9! of inner channel 95, as maybe best seen in Fig. 14. Sid walls 8! are integral with webs 81, 81conjointly forming the base of channel 85 and separated by a slot 88 toreceive stringer 4l of fastener element 40. Adjacent the opening orforward end of slider 80, webs 81 as well as side walls .81 merge intoand are preferably integral with the walls of channel 95. It should benoted that channel .85 decreases in cross-section from the opening orforward end to the -closing or rearward end of slider 80, and isconnected to channel only adjacent the opening orforreceive stringer 4!of element 40, and having rearwardly extending bulbous edges 94. Theseedges are arranged to have substantially line contact in the grooves 35of enlargement 45, as best seen in Fig. 21. Referring to Fig. 14, itwill be noted that slot 91 approaches the slot 83 defined by flanges 82of the outer channel from the opening toward the closing end of slider89, and that member 92 decreases in thickness in the same direction.Figs. through 18 illustrate these features, and it will be noted thatslots 88 and 9! merge at the connection of channels 85 and 95 at theopening end of the slider.

Channel 95 terminates short of the rearward end of channel 85, as seenin Figs. 13, 14 and 19, so that the fastener elements are guided only bythe outer channel 85 as they pass from the closing end of the slider 80.Channel 85 loosely embraces element 38, and as the slider 88 is drawn ina closing direction, the rounded back surface 96 of channel 95 enterssocket and spreads its walls so that enlargement may be drawn by thereentrant flanges into the socket as channel 95 approaches the rearwardend of the slider. The flexible walls of socket 35 tend to close onenlargement 45 as the latter emerges from channel S5.

However, in accordance with the invention, channel 85 does not functionto close socket 35, in order to avoid abrasion of the surfaces of thesocket, and only such resilience of the socket is relied on to efiectpartial closure of the fastener. As explained, such closure is notsufliciently complete, immediately beyond the outer channel 85, toafford adequate resistance to transverse sep aration stresses. Toprovide for firm closing of socket 35 immediately beyond the slider, thetongues 70 of slider 5U could be utilized, as could also an equivalentarrangement.

In the case of slider 80, such equivalent arrangement is shown as a pairof parallel rollers 98 rotatably mounted in extensions 99 of outerchannel 85 and arranged to engage the outer surfaces of socket 35.Rollers 98 extend inwardly of side walls 8|, as may be seen from acomparison of Figs. 19 and 20, and thus roll along the walls of socket35 pressing them into firm interlocking engagement with enlargement 45to resist transverse opening stresses on the fastener.

It will thus be noted that the sliders and 89 are characterized by nothaving a close, exact fit with elements 30 and 4!) and thus not havingan abrading effect thereon. Also, as the tolerances are accordingly notso close, the sliders may be more easily formed. Slider 80 has thefurther advantage of being arranged for formation by punching,extrusion, or plastic techniques, facilitating mass production andincreasing the range of usable materials. To resist the transverseopening stresses which might open the fastener during its final closingmovement beyond the slider, extensions in the form of tongues, rollers,or the like are provided to insure rapid and positive closing of thefastener. It should be understood that the terms opening end and forwardend, as used in relation to the slider, refer to the end of the sliderfrom which the fastener emerges or extends in an open condition and thatthe opposite end of the slider is designated the closing end or rearwardend.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail to illustrate the application of the principlesthereof, it should be understood that the invention may be otherwiseembodied such principles.

What I claim is:

1. For use with a slide fastener of the type including a first flexiblefastener element comprising a substantially flat, elongated stringerhaving an enlargement extending along a free edge thereof and a secondflexible fastener element comprising a substantially flat, elongatedstringer having a socket extending along a free edge thereof, saidsocket opening toward and arranged to embracingly receive saidenlargement, a slider movable forwardly along said elements in a closindirection to effect insertion of said enlargement into said socket toclose the fastener and movabl rearwardly to effect removal of saidenlargement from said socket to open the fastener, said slidercomprising means defining an outer G-shaped channel arranged to surroundsaid socket with a clearing fit and having reentrant flanges defining afirst slot for receiving the stringer of said second fastener element,the portion of said means defining the base of said outer channel havinga second slot therein for receiving the stringer of said first fastenerelement;

without departing from said means also having integrally connectedportions defining an inner channel for receiving said enlargement, saidinner channel having reentrant portions defining a restricted openingfacing toward said second slot, said first slot and said restrictedopening converging rearwardly to draw said enlargement into and out ofsaid socket as the slider is moved respectively in closing and openingdirections, the rearward end of the inner channel terminating short ofthe rearward end of the outer channel; said means defining said channelshaving extensions projecting beyond the rearward end of the outerchannel adjacent opposite sides thereof, said extension having surfacesdisposed inwardly with respect to the side walls of said outer channelwith a substantially closer spacing than said side walls for firmlyengaging the outer side Walls of the socket of said second fastenerelement beyond the rearward end of the outer channel and forcing themtoward each other in firm engagement with the enlargement of said firstfastener element as the slider is moved forwardly in a closingdirection.

2. A slider according to claim 1 in which said extensions projectingbeyond the rearward end of the outer channel are transversely fiatcontinuations of the side walls of the outer channel and convergerearwardiy toward each other to form said inwardly disposed surfaces forengaging the outer side Walls of the socket of said second fastenerelement.

3. A slider according to claim 1 in which said extensions projectingbeyond the rearward end of the outer channel have a pair of rollers sideWalls of the socket of said second fastener element.

4. For use With a slide fastener of the type including a first flexiblefastener element comprising a substantially fiat, elongated stringerelongated stringer having a socket extending along a free edge thereof,said socket opening toward and arranged to embracingly receive saidenlargement and having inwardly directed ribs adapted to interlock inthe grooves of said enlargement for securing the enlargement in the 7socket, a slider movable forwardly along said elements in a closingdirection to effect insertion of said enlargement into said socket toclose the fastener and movable rearwardly to effect removal of saidenlargement from said socket to open the fastener, said slidercomprising means defining an outer C-shaped channel arranged to surroundsaid socket with a clearing fit and having reentrant flanges defining afirst slot for receiving the stringer of said fastener element, theportion of said means defining the base of said outer channel having asecond slot therein for receiving the stringer of said first fastenerelement; said means also having integrally connected portions definingan inner channel for receiving said enlargement, said inner channelhaving reentrant portions defining a restricted opening facing towardsaid second slot, said first slot and said restricted opening convergingrearwardly to draw said enlargement into and out of said socket as theslider is moved respectively in closing and opening directions, therearward end of the inner channel terminating short of the rearward endof the outer channel; said means defining said channels havingextensions projecting beyond the rearward end of the outer channeladjacent opposite sides thereof, said extensions having surfacesdisposed inwardly with respect to the side walls of said outer channelwith a substantially closer spacing than said side walls for firmlyengaging the outer side walls of the socket of said second fastenerelement beyond the rearward end of the outer channel and forcing themtoward each other in firm engagement with the enlargement of said firstfastener element, with said inwardly directed ribs of the 10 socketinterlocked with said grooves defined by the side edges of theenlargement, as the slider is moved forwardly in a closing direction.

5. A slider according to claim 4 in which said extensions projectingbeyond the rearward end of the outer channel are transversely fiatcontinuations of the side walls of the outer channel and convergerearwardly toward each other to form said inwardly disposed surfaces forengaging the outer side walls of the socket of said second fastenerelement.

6. A slider according to claim 4 in which said extensions projectingbeyond the rearward end of the outer channel have a pair of rollersmounted thereon with their axes parallel to the side walls of the outerchannel, said rollers being disposed adjacent opposite sides of saidouter channel and being spaced substantially closer together than theside walls of said outer channel to form said inwardly disposed surfacesfor engaging the outer side walls of the socket of said second fastenerelement.

HERMANN REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in thefile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,959,318 Sundback May 15, 19341,959,319 Sipe May 15, 1934 2,035,028 Temple Mar. 24, 1936 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 536,990 Germany of 1931 325,618 Italy of1935 375,235 Italy of 1939 200,985 Switzerland Mar. 1, 1939 522,663Great Britain of 1940 241,887 Switzerland of 1946

